The Clippers moved to reach a long-term contract agreement with Chris Kaman on Sunday night, offering the productive 7-foot center a five-year, $50-million extension, team sources said...

It was unclear whether Kaman and Pelinka had discussed the offer and informed the Clippers of a decision. Under NBA rules, Kaman has until Oct. 31 to accept.

If the offer is rejected, Kaman would become a restricted free agent after this season, and the Clippers could match any offer he received from another team. Kaman, who has a salary of almost $3.5 million in the final season of his contract, also could decline the offer, sign a one-year deal with the Clippers this summer and become an unrestricted free agent after the 2007-08 season.

Kaman has an interesting decision. On one hand, Samuel Dalembert signed a six year/$58M contract with Philadelphia in August 2005. The previous summer, Eric Dampier fetched seven years/$73M. So what the Clippers are offering Kaman is a contract with fewer years and less guaranteed money than what two inferior centers were able to...well...extort from Philadelphia and Dallas.

On the other hand, Kaman could get hurt; he could take a step backwards; he has a franchise and a coach that have maximized his talents and understand what kind of basketball most suits his game. On top of that, he is the beneficiary of a power forward alongside him that makes life a helluva lot easier for him on both ends of the floor. Where is Chris going to find another PF that draws the kind of double team in the halfcourt that EB commands on the other block? [Well, there's KG] In short, the Clippers' style of basketball is uniquely suited to Chris Kaman.

I have no earthly idea what Kaman will do. It wouldn't surprise me if he and Pelinka decide to go the Olowokandi route and sign a one-year tender after the season is over, then test the market as an unrestricted free agent in 2008. Make no mistake: odds are that he'll get a better offer on the open market, be it an offer sheet after this season or as an unrestricted FA after '07-'08. There's a cruel irony for the Clippers that, by utilizing him perfectly and making Kaman a better player, they're actually driving up his price.

Addendum/Correction/Glaring Omission to the Cool-City/Crappy-Team Index: I was remiss in not including Toronto on the list. In fact, I'd rank it right there with New York in the (2) slot, though, like Minneapolis, the snot-freezing climate during the NBA season warrants caution.

Posted Wednesday, October 29 at 3:20PM

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Comments

It's an interesting dilemma for Kaman. Does he take the guaranteed offer, which, after all, is more money than he ever thought he'd see growing up in the sticks in Michigan, or does he wait to see what the open market will bear? If he continues to improve, he will no doubt receives more lucrative offers, albeit from the likes of Charlotte and other bottom feeders. He has a great situation in LA - likes his coach - fits well on the team. Does he recognize that, and leave some money on the table, or does he chase the bigger pay day?

The era of the "center" is over. Diaw proves this in Phoenix. Let Kaman walk, and use the money to find more shooters and more versatility, ala the Suns & Dallas. I'd rather stretch the defense with shooters, let maggette and livingston slash to the basket, and play uptempo.

That's a very good point, Dave. I recall Kaman sitting for long stretches at the end of very important games last year, especially against teams like Pheonix. I don't think that's what you want from a $10 mill/year player.
Having said that, the offer is a nice change for the Clips.

"The era of the "center" is over. Diaw proves this in Phoenix. Let Kaman walk, and use the money to find more shooters and more versatility, ala the Suns & Dallas. I'd rather stretch the defense with shooters, let maggette and livingston slash to the basket, and play uptempo."

Read what Todd wrote, I mean, come on. And Kaman is one of the few legit centers in the League. $10M could end up being and incrediblye bargain for a player of his caliber and age.

If Kaman doesn't accept the offer, let him walk. Can anyone name one really good player that the Clippers had on their roster who went on to free agency and who the Clippers wish they kept? I'm still waiting.........

Everyone thought the Candyman was developing into something special. He posted similar numbers to Kaman before his contract expired while showing marginal performance before then. Who would like Candyman now? I'm not a Candyman fan by any means, but he also didn't have ADD.

"If Kaman doesn't accept the offer, let him walk. Can anyone name one really good player that the Clippers had on their roster who went on to free agency and who the Clippers wish they kept? I'm still waiting........."

How is that good logic?

"Everyone thought the Candyman was developing into something special. He posted similar numbers to Kaman before his contract expired while showing marginal performance before then. Who would like Candyman now? I'm not a Candyman fan by any means, but he also didn't have ADD."

Please review stats and tell me how similar their numbers really are (look at FG%, and 40 minute per avg). Kaman is a much more efficient player. Also he's much younger than Candy Man for the years you cite.

Ben Wallace is 6'9" and Tim Duncan played PF on the Spurs championship teams.

You also conveniently left out the fact that 8 of the previous 10 champions before 2000 happened to be captured by teams without a great center.

The Heat came back from down 0-2 and almost down 0-3 to win the championship last season, but they were only able to do that because they made a shift in strategy from feeding the ball to Shaq to feeding the ball to Wade. On top of that, 3 of the final four teams last season did not have dominant true nba centers.

I think Kaman is a good player, but by no means do you need a dominant true center to win in the NBA nowadays. In fact the only dominant true centers I can even think of in the league are Yao and a now aging Shaq (even if you were to count Duncan, that only makes 3 in the entire league and Kaman will never reach the level of those 3).

So far, DTS and Baylor have shown that they will match, and when they haven't they've signed other suitable players (sam, cat, TT, Etc.)

Let's not forget that there were ONLY upper level seats for sale, due to the increased demand for season tickets, not to mention all the cash DTS had to have made on last year's playoffs.

DTS and Kaman/Pelinka are both smart men. If Kaman signs, I vote for him to be mensch-ed. If he doesn'T and DTS matches, I vote for DTS and Baylor to be mensch-ed.

Isn't Kaman a big contributor to the success of EB?
When it comes to the hardcourt, Kaman is the 4-5th option, no? You can't teach size and that's got to be worth 10m/year, especially as #2 of the best rebounding tandem in the NBA.
Wouldn't Sam(shaun)-Cat-Maggs-Brand(TT)-Ross constitute a decent Phoenix-esque enough 5 for all you "let's be phoenix" fans?
Wouldn't it be great to ALSO have the current CK-EB-SC-CM-Q lineup as well?
It's the perfect combination of halfcourt and "fullcourt" bball (pujit included).

"6 of those 8 teams featured the best player ever to play the game. Lets leave that alone for now. The Clips don't have MJ." Last time I checked, MJ wasn't a center and thats what the discussion was about........Todd.

"If anything, there's a paucity of legit centers in the League and a team *HAS AN ADVADNTAGE* by having one of those guys on their team."

Did it seem like the Clippers had an ADVANTAGE with Kaman against PHX in the playoffs? If anything, the Suns had an advantage over the Clippers when Kaman was on the floor.

"My point was that having a talent like Jordan allows you to defy conventional wisdom. The Clips don't have that luxury."

Like I stated before....just recently, the Pistons won the title without a conventional center and the Heat turned their series around with the Mavs last year because they made the shift from running the offense through Shaq to running the offense through Wade.

You're underestimating the impact of the rule changes that the league has made involving perimeter play. You just don't need that big lumbering center in the middle to win anymore in this league.

According to today's LA Times it looks like 50 million dollars just isn't good enough for Kaman anyway. He seems to think he should be paid like "Chandler or Dalembert".....we all know how those two contracts turned out don't we?

If Kaman won't accept the $50m, I say fuck him and save the money for Shaun. Then buy-out Shortsanitis' contract with Greece and bring him to the U.S. for the 2007-2008 season.

What the hell does Kaman need more than $50m for? A hunting bow made of pure gold and diamonds? I like his game, but the born-again hick is being a little greedy and I can already hear the "boos" like the old Candyman days.

Kaman also made various statements that make the Clippers' contract-extension offer, believed to be a five-year, $50 million deal, look only as a starting point of negotiations be- tween his agent and the team.

"I'm not going to go for what's under market value for my position after how I performed last year and what I know I'm capable of," said Kaman, who also declined to discuss specifics of the offer after practice. "If we don't get something done, we can always wait until the summer and see what happens then."

"I know what guys have gotten most recently with Dalembert and Tyson Chandler," Kaman said. "I know what they did in their years when they got paid, and I think my numbers are probably a little bit better in some areas."

Based on his opinion about his standing in the game, Kaman is believed to be seeking a five-year contract averaging at least $11 million a season — more than Dalembert and Chandler.

But with Kaman at an average of $11 million, the Clippers would approach the luxury-tax threshold if they, as planned, offer a multiyear extension to backup point guard Shaun Livingston before the 2007-08 season.

"I'd love to stay here, if I can," he said. "My big contingency here is that I want to make sure Coach Dunleavy is my coach. I want to make sure I'm playing for him and nobody else."

Andrew - hahaha good stuff... though I respectfully disagree. Personally if I'm his agent I advise him to hold out. If his numbers are comparable to this past season I would guess he'd command alot more than $50M on the open market.

The saving $ for Shaun argument is great if Shaun ends up actually being any good...

This is the classic gamble of: do you take a good deal, which is probably a little less than you are worth, or do you take the "gamble" and count on having a big year and getting an even bigger deal.

I think the sky is the limit for Kaman. Playing with Brand is huge for him, and Dunleavy uses his skills well. But, the Clips are trying to get him on the cheap.

The question for Kaman is to take the $10 mil avg. per year, or have a great year and maybe make $11 or $12 mil a year, and probably get a longer-term deal. It all depends on how conservative a person he is.

Ok, do you people realize that Kaman is a great C, but he gets streaky, and no one wants to pay a huge salary for a guy who is streaky. I love Kaman, but I know, and so does the rest of the league, that he has another year or so before he is a Dalmbert salary player. I think he just wants to see if the Clips are willing to make the move to give him that little extra cash.

TRAPP - I am sick of you already with your small ball talk. Having a big man at C is clutch no matter what. The Suns have to maintain such a high standard of athleticism it's rediculous. They have to be able to outrun EVERYONE!!! That is why they win games. They've gotten lucky with getting the best pure athletes in the league. However, Kaman can dunk and block almost anyone on that team whenever he gets the opportunity due to his height and above average skill. The rest of the Clippers are also highly athletic. Look at Maggete, the guy is ripped. Livingston is young and fast too. Even Cat and Cassell are still in great shape and can run with the Suns, but not all night, They have to have a dominant presence in the paint for the D if nothing else. The only reason teams aren't playing traditional big man ball is because THERE ARE NO VIABLE BIG MEN AVAILABLE!!!!! Plain and simple. Get over yourself and just root for your damn team!!!!

Ahhh... the Kaveman speaks. It is known throughout Clipper circles that Chris has the lowest intellect on the team. He's the butt of many jokes to this end. However, this latest blunder takes the cake.

Just let your agent be the bad guy here. Keep your cro-magnun mouth shut and give us the ol cliche -- "I'm just focusing on basketball" -- especially when all you did the whole summer was travel and goof off with your meat-headed buddies from the Michigan outback.

It's fine to want the most money out of your boss... everybody does. And fans, even the most die-hard accept that. But when you Sprewell and talk publicly about wanting more money, you never come off as the good guy. Fans can forgive your Hogan-esque hair, your ADD, your turnovers, missed layups, stupid fouls, and botched plays... but not your public statements about $50M being inadequate to pay for your new camouflaged hunting gear.

CLIPS I totally agree with you. Kaman is good but I think even $50M is a bit much for his streaky play. Shit, I would be ecstatic to even get $5M a year if I were him. I like the guy, don't get me wrong, but like i said before, he needs another year to get better and then we will see what kind af mettle he really has. I hope he can do it cause I like having a good CENTER ON MY TEAM!!!!!

Alex - well I agree with you and disagree with you. As you mentioned, there are few viable big men. If you want one, gotta pay up this is the unfortunate market reality. $50M for Kaman, I am afraid, may end up looking like a relative bargain this time next year. Remember, he is 24. I think he's only going to get better.

Aloysius: "The saving $ for Shaun argument is great if Shaun ends up actually being any good..."

If you saw Shaun's performance during the first game in Russia, you'd know he's already good. One of the best games I've ever seen him play and it was the first of the season. Personally, I beleive he's going to evolve into one of the best PGs the NBA has ever seen.

BTW, I thought Kaman was only so-so in those games and he admitted somewhere that he hasn't done much work this summer at all.

Andrew - I saw him during the playoffs last year with the best +/- of any Clipper. Look - I'm a huge Livingston fan also, but let's not get ahead of ourselves. Let him string together a nice, say, half of an NBA season avg'ing 25+ minutes, and let's reevaluate then.

Is anyone else surprised at the lack of national media attenetion to Kaman's offer? It seems everytime a notable restricted free agent is given an offer, ESPN will at least give a mention of it.
What gives?

Making good personnel decisions as a GM takes more than just logic. You have to look at the intangibles as well. While Kaman's stats are pretty decent for the relatively short time he's been in the league, one has to question his decision-making ability and heart. He gets confused in the paint. Aside from blocks, what other stats do you have on him for playing defense? What have his opponents been averaging while he is on the floor? Sam Cassell yelled at him at least a couple of times during the season for missing (ADD?) assigned coverages. I haven't seen Cassell do that with any of the other players. While Brand, Livingston, Ross, Maggette and company were improving their game and working on their bodies during the summer, Kaman took a 2-month hunting trip. Now he is nursing a hamstring and asking for what I think is more than the Clippers are paying Brand.